Pirelli will be the official tyre partner of the 2018 FIA Junior World Rally Championship – providing strong support throughout the year and supplying competition tyres for all five events on the new-look calendar.

24 November 2017

The partnership between Pirelli and M-Sport builds on a strong relationship that was forged during the 2011 and 2012 FIA WRC Academy, and the two companies are resolute on nurturing the sport’s future stars.

Pirelli will provide their Sottozero-ice studded tyre for Rally Sweden before moving to their RK and RKW tyres for the sealed-surface roads of the Tour de Corse. Pirelli’s K Scorpion tyre will then be used on the gravel tracks of Rally de Portugal, Rally Finland and the returning Rally of Turkey.

Pirelli will also support the championship’s generous prize structure with 200 tyres towards the eventual champion’s 2019 WRC 2 campaign.

Pirelli Rally Activity Manager, Terenzio Testoni, said:

“Pirelli has held a philosophy of supporting young talent in rallying for many years, thanks to international programmes such as Pirelli Star Driver and WRC Academy, which have helped propel drivers such as Ott Tänak, Hayden Paddon, Craig Breen and Elfyn Evans to the very top of the sport.

“We’re delighted to renew our association with the Junior World Rally Championship, where previous winners on Pirelli tyres have included the current World Champion, Sébastien Ogier.

“With identical cars and tyres, the Junior World Rally Championship is the ideal platform to put the spotlight purely on driving talent – and it’s fitting that the car used is the Ford Fiesta, which won the FIA World Rally Championships for Drivers and Manufacturers this year.”

Junior WRC Manager, Maciej Woda, said:

“I would like to welcome Pirelli as the latest FIA Junior World Rally Championship partner. We have good memories of our collaboration with them in the WRC Academy and believe that, together, we can offer a very interesting and competitive package for the 2018 season.

“Pirelli were on board when we first delivered a one-make series alongside the FIA, and it’s great to have them back with us now. Together, we hope to discover the latest generation of rally stars.”